PA Sees 23 Percent Decrease In Cornavirus Cases: Latest Numbers

PENNSYLVANIA — All six of the key metrics tracked by the state to measure the coronavirus pandemic's severity in local communities and the burden on the healthcare system once again showed improvement over the past week.

New cases dropping dramatically

Perhaps most notable was the 23 percent decrease in the total number of new cases over the most recent seven-day period tracked, which runs from Jan. 29 to Feb. 4.

New cases fell from 26,382 the previous week to 20,204 this week, according to the Department of Health's Early Warning Monitoring System Dashboard.

The seven-day average has not been this low since early November, when the fall surge was still ramping up.

The incidence rate per 100,000 residents saw a similar drop from 206 to 157 over that seven-day period.

Positivity rates and county trends

Moreover, counties around the state are starting to drop down near the "concerning" five percent threshold for positivity rate on all coronavirus tests. Three counties are even below five percent.

“This is the first week in many, many weeks that we are seeing counties with lower than five percent positivity rates as well as all 67 counties reporting lower than 20 percent positivity rates – this is good news for mitigating the spread of this virus in our communities across the commonwealth,” Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement Monday.

Statewide, the positivity rate is at 8.6 percent, down from last week's 9.3. A total of 23 of the state's 67 counties are below 8 percent, including some of the most densely populated counties like Philadelphia, Allegheny, Delaware, Chester, and Montgomery.

However, most counties remain in the "substantial" level of community transmission, the highest level of transmission tracked by the Department of Health and used to make recommendations on things like school reopenings. Only one county, Cameron, is in the "low" category, while just seven counties (Armstrong, Bedford, Cambria, Elk, Indiana, Westmoreland, Wyoming) are in the "moderate" category.

The substantial level includes counties with more than 100 new cases per 100,000 residents over a seven day period, or a percent positivity rate above 10 percent over seven days.

Healthcare metrics

The Department of Health dashboard also tracks three vital statistics that aim to show the degree to which the pandemic is placing pressure on the healthcare system at both the county and the state level.

The average daily number of hospitalizations due to coronavirus decreased from 3,804 to 3,269. This number has now fallen for several straight weeks, though officials continue to warn that hospitals can quickly become overwhelmed again if there is another surge.

The percentage of emergency room visits due to the virus decreased slightly, from 0.7 percent to 0.6 percent.

And finally, the average daily number of patients of ventilators across the state fell from 453 to 400.

New cases and vaccine progress

As Pennsylvania faces a national vaccine shortage and issues with efficiency in distribution, keeping numbers low remains as important as ever, officials say.

"While we wait for more vaccine, we need Pennsylvanians to be patient and continue practicing these proven health practices and mitigation efforts to unite against COVID-19," Assistant Secretary of Health Allison Beam said Monday.

Officials once again reminded residents to avoid social gatherings and take basic precautions, like mask wearing and hand washing, to minimize spread. With more vaccine doses coming, along with the warmer weather, authorities see reason for optimism.

Pennsylvanians can learn more about where they can get vaccinated and when they'll be eligible at the state Department of Health's vaccine website here.

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